How Did It Come To THIS?
by The-Other-Ghostwriter
Summary: A series of events that probably should'nt have happened leads to a VERY awkward situation for Fry and Bender. How the HELL did it come to THIS? FryBender MPreg. I'm sick.
1. Chapter 1

How'd It Come to THIS?!

Chapter 1

There were a lot of things Fry still didn't understand about the future. And really, a _lot_. But he found it best not to ask questions unless it was of immediate importance to his life (which it almost _always_ was). That was why he didn't really ask questions when the Professor finally made the Reverse-Fossilization machine. Sure, he saw the effects of it on the What-If Machine, what with Bender and all. But the Professor had said he made it for a much larger picture.

The Professor almost never had a larger picture.

But, of course, he _always_ needed a test subject.

"Just make sure you don't overdo anything like in the What-If Machine, Bender," Leela said as the Professor pulled the straps on the gurney tighter around Bender's limbs.

"Yeah, yeah," Bender muttered, rolling his eyes. "I'm not stupid, you know." Amy snorted from behind Hermes. "Up yours, Wong!" he snapped. "Not so tight, damn it!"

"There we go," Prof. Farnsworth said cheerfully, patting the restraints on Bender's left wrist. "Beginning de-fossilization!" he announced needlessly as he moved to the lever on the wall.

"See you on the other side, buddy," Fry said, hands in his pocket and looking suspenseful.

"I'm not dying, you jerkwad," Bender said. "Although, when I'm human, I-."

"Now!" The Professor pulled the lever down and sparks flew everywhere and Bender convulsed on the gurney. Everyone watched with mild fascination—as they'd seen it once before—as Bender's metal body began to slowly reform into a flesh one. A few moments into it, when the painfully obviousness of becoming male human began to show, Fry took off his jacket and threw it around Bender's waist area. Everyone else heaved a sigh of relief.

A whining-down noise and a hiss resounded, and the process was complete. The Professor flipped the switch back up and proceeded to un-strap the restraints. Bender sat up and held his head, a slightly disoriented look on his face. "Oww…." he moaned, rubbing his temple. His fingers met with hair, and his hand stroked back.

"…..Huh…." Fry said thoughtfully, looking Bender around. "…You look kinda different from the What-If Machine's human Bender…." Bender looked at him, struggling a little to focus.

"Wuddya mean?" he demanded. Fry snatched the compact Amy had just taken out to touch herself up with and handed it to Bender, who nearly dropped it from not being used to having extra fingers. He held it up to look at his face.

It was true, he looked a little different. Instead of short blonde hair, his hair was a platinum blonde and a little longer. Small locks framed his face, which was basically the same as the What-If Machine depicted it to be. But his eyes were very different. Instead of the dark blue expected, they were a more golden brown that was reminiscent of his original robotic color.

"Y' look nice, Bender," Fry said helpfully. Bender examined his face for a moment more before putting the compact down and sliding his legs over the edge of the metal gurney. He made a move to stand when Fry leaned over from the other side to tie his jacket around Bender's waist.

"First things first," Leela said. "We've got to get you some clothes."

"Damn," Bender said under his breath.

"Huh?"

"Nothin'."

Bender was situated a few hours later, in some spare clothes of Fry's, which fit almost perfectly, aside from the fact that Bender had a broader chest and was slightly shorter. After complaining of slight pangs in his stomach, they started him off light with some broth and milk, and refused to let him indulge. After that, it was getting late, so Fry took on the task of getting Bender home unharmed and without any distractions.

It wasn't easy. Bender, excited with new views of _everything_, kept skipping out of Fry's immediate reach and Fry had to chase him down every ¼ block. What should have been a 10-minute walk to their apartment turned into a two hour endurance trek. Fry was wiped by the time he got to the apartment, dragging Bender behind him by the arm like a kid.

"Finally," he breathed, hauling them both into his room. He tossed Bender inside and quickly shut the door. 'Home free,' he thought with a mental cheer. Heaving a sigh, he walked over to the closet to pull out a spare blanket. "You're sleeping on the couch tonight, Bender," he said, tossing the blanket onto the couch. "Tomorrow, we'll look for a bed for you—_get out of the fridge_!"

Fry stomped over and smacked Bender's hands out of his fridge and shut it. "Go to bed now, Bender! Time to sleep! Sleep!"

"Why do I have to sleep _now_?" Bender practically whined. Fry's eye twitched.

"Because, if you don't get sleep, your body will overdo itself, your organs will shut down, and you'll die," he said with an eerie fatigue-induced clarity that made Bender blink. Fry took that opportunity to drag Bender to the couch and push him down. "Sleep. You can eat when you wake up. If I hear a peep outta you before 7 a.m., then I'll saw your legs off." Fry took off his jacket and dropped it on the floor before crawling into his bed and pulling the covers over him. "Goodnight, Bender," he said with schizophrenic sweetness.

Bender looked in the direction of his roommate and suddenly yawned. His brain seemed to be screaming the same thing Fry was, and he obligated to the need, shutting his eyes and pulling the blanket over him.

**It gets going next chapter. Really. God, I need a Red Bull right now….**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Over the duration of the next month, Bender integrated slowly but effectively into human nature. He learned the limits of alcohol intake, when to stop eating, and the proper bathroom etiquette. He was very happy, however, to learn that he could smoke as much as he wanted, which he did as often as possible.

The month of October was coming to an end, and the crew of Planet Express was decorating the place for Halloween—but mostly Fry. Dwight and Cubert were helping, but making up for their niceness by stealing Fry's candy. And by the consideration that Halloween was now his favorite holiday since Christmas had been shattered and pissed on, Fry gave himself up to the holiday spirit by taking the two 14-year-olds costume shopping (saving a headache for Hermes, LaBarbara, and the Professor). He himself decided to go as 'Captain Yesterday', much to the embarrassment to nearly everyone else. They were embarrassed because he insisted on wearing it around _everywhere_.

The day of Halloween, Fry was in a rush to get everything ready for the party the took the liberty of himself throwing. He was running around between tasks, spewing out random, stupid comments, like "Only Captain Yesterday can throw a party of such 21st century magnitude!", or "Captain Yesterday is here to fix the 31st century Halloween slum!". Then there was the more humorous "_Oh, shit! My tassels!!!_"

Dwight and Cubert were allowed—after hours of crying and childish kicking of inventions—to go out by themselves for Halloween while the adults had their party at the Planet Express HQ. Fry had demanded that they all wear costumes. They all grudgingly agreed, and to save the trouble, threw on whatever they could find around the house.

Leela threw on her old Clobberella costume to shut Fry up; Hermes, his old Olympic limbo uniform, and Amy used the excuse to put on the cowgirl pinup outfit her parents gave her to attract a potential father to their grandchildren. The Professor just threw on a bathrobe, half-way oblivious to the party. Dr. Zoidburg went as the Professor. The only one seemingly sans a costume was….

"Bender, where's your costume? The party officially starts in…." Fry looked at his watch. "Five minutes ago."

"Couldn't find one," Bender said off-handedly, exhaling smoke from one of his godsend cigars. He was unpleasantly surprised when a red cape and something hard was thrown at him.

"Here's your Super King costume," Fry said cheerfully. "Now, you, Leela, and me can be the New Justice Team again. Cool, huh?!"

"No."

"Come on, Bender," Fry said, borderline whining. "I'll personally let the alcohol restriction off! It's Halloween—you can get boozed all you want!"

_That_ perked Bender up. In two seconds, the cape and crown was secured in their places and the cigar put out. "Show me where the booze is, Captain Yesterday!"

"Yes Sir, Super King!" Fry said, punching a fist in the air. They made a mad dash to the door, fighting for who got to go through it first. Bender won and skidded into Amy in front of the beer cooler. Fry followed a few moments later, rubbing his head and his mask askew.

A few hours into the party, true to the Halloween spirit, nearly everyone was shit-faced drunk. Except for the Professor—he was unconscious due to natural causes. Everyone else was chanting 'strip-strip-strip!' at Amy as she did just that. A loud cheer rang out among the men when the tie-in-front top was being lassoed in the air.

Next came an involuntary game of 'spin the bottle', where Leela ended up French-ing Zoidburg, Amy smooching an unconscious Prof. Farnsworth (who was no doubtedly having a nice dream whilst she did so), and Bender kissing Fry shortly on the lips—barely a peck, but still got catcalls, anyway.

Hermes was the next to fall unconscious, curled up under the table hugging a bottle of ale like it was his own newborn son. Zoidburg eventually followed suit, murmuring something about mackerel and smelling goooood. Leela was currently watching the white noise on TV with morbid fascination, and Amy—still topless—was sprawled out on a recliner, snoring.

Fry, snapping out of his near-coma state for a second, realized that it was late and everyone else was asleep (or unconscious—big difference). He poked Bender several times in the arm. Bender was giggling madly over….something….and Fry ended up picking his roommate up and tossing him over his shoulder, swaying violently and hitting both of them on the doorframes on his way out.

How exactly they got back to Robot Arms Apts. without 1)Getting busted with drunk in public, 2)Fry loosing consciousness with the extra weight over his shoulder and in his bladder and/or 3)Not getting their asses killed from Bender singing folk songs at the top of his lungs the whole way there was beyond them. However, as soon as Fry got in his apartment's doorframe, everything let loose. First Bender was pitched to the floor, and he followed, trying to grab at the pretty strings of light in his vision to stop from falling. He failed.

He heard a grunt as his body connected with something….not the floor….and he looked down to see his elbow had borderline impaled itself in Bender's gut.

"…..How'dya get down there…?" Fry slurred, struggling to sit up. Bender grunted again in reply and shoved Fry to the side to try to sit up himself.

"How the hell should I know?" he garbled back. He looked at Fry with unfocused eyes, blinked, looked again, and burst into giggling.

"Wusso funny?" Fry demanded. Bender giggled again.

"….You….." he snorted out. "….You're…..you're drunk!" He giggled again and stood up, swaying, as he made his way to his bed. Fry's eyes narrowed as he stood up too—a little too fast.

"Hey!" he hollered, "I'm not as think as you drunk I am!...Err…..drink as you thunk….uh…..fuck….." He looked at Bender, who was crawling into bed. "Hey, that's _my_ bed!" he whined. Bender looked at him, the bed, and back again.

"Nuh-uh," he said childishly. "Iz mine. I saw it first!"

"It's mine!"

"Mine!"

"MINE!!!!" Fry dive-tackled Bender onto the bed and tried to wrestle him off. All he got off was Bender's cape and shirt. Bender's retaliation was Fry's mask, medallion, and a rip of the already low-cut one-piece costume. At the sound of the rip, both stopped short as if they'd heard a gunshot or something. Fry looked at his costume, then at Bender. His eyes trailed lower to Bender's chest, then back up to the former robot's face. He smiled slightly. Bender blinked.

"You're drunk…." he continued with his former banter. Fry's hand traveled up Bender's side and over his shoulder to rest on his bicep.

"You're sexy….." he retaliated, leaning forward to peck Bender's lips like his friend had done earlier that night. Deciding he liked that peck, he did it again. And again; and the third time, he kept his lips lightly on his roommate's. Bender unconsciously responded, his lips parting slightly to deepen the kiss. Fry lowered his body to Bender's and rested both hands on his friend's shoulders to get comfortable. Bender's hands, which had been grasping at Fry's costume, slowly let go to slide up Fry's back to pull him closer, if possible.

Moments passed, and they finally parted for air. Fry's face was flushed with mild arousal and his breath was hitched. "…Wow…." was all he could say. Bender swallowed noisily and nodded assent.

"Yeah…" he agreed, "…wow…."

Deafening silence rang between the two, and both simultaneously dove back in for more. Fry's hands dragged from Bender's shoulders to his chest, and down toward his pants. He raised his own hips so he could undo Bender's pants button and slowly slide the zipper down.

Something of the old Bender clocked itself into the current horny Bender's head. No _way_ in Robot Hell was he going to be a _bottom_! He grabbed Fry and flipped them over so he was dominant and for a moment sat there, poised over Fry like an animal out to kill before tearing the rest of the remaining costume off of Fry's body.

Fry, for that earlier moment, was speechless. Bender, partially silhouetted by the full moonlight sifting through his window, had looked like a god. A sex god. Fry, who was never really that religious, had for that moment decided to take this new faith out for a test drive.

A rough hand fondling his crotch made him arch up and gasp, clutching Bender's bare shoulders. This new religion was doing well for him—for now.

Next door, the two robot friends who had Tuesday poker nights called it quits early; the sounds next door were scaring them to deactivation.

**Longer this time around. Oh well. I am sooooo sick in the head…..**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Sunlight filtered in through the threadbare curtains of Fry's apartment window, gently kissing the face of its tenant. Fry winced at the invading light that worsened his hangover headache and clenched his eyes shut tighter and rolled over to nuzzle his head into his pillow.

And paused.

…….Since when was his pillow hard, warm, and….breathing….!? Fry willed himself to open one eye, for fear of the hangover's bitchy morning attitude if both were opened. He saw what he felt—warm flesh that was slowly moving up and down in a gentle breathing motion. Both eyes now open to their full extent, Fry's gaze led up to the sleeping face of his best friend, who was, for the moment, oblivious to anything and everything. Fry lowered his gaze from the face to the starting point on Bender's bare chest, then, swallowing hard, looked lower to see that Bender—and himself—was indeed naked; his thin sheet pooling messily way below Bender's waist and just covering up the vital area.

Fry looked from Bender's body to his own, which was just as naked, and was currently in an almost tender embrace with one arm. Fry, with every ounce of willpower he possessed, gently and slowly bent Bender's arm to free himself and sat up.

He immediately wished he hadn't as a sharp, intense pain ran from his ass all the way up his spine. He cried out in near agony and put a hand over his mouth to stifle anything that might wake Bender up. Too late. His roommate grunted and blinked his eyes clear, then sat up and looked to his side. And blinked. And his mouth dropped open slightly.

Fry was sitting up as well with one hand over his mouth with tears in his eyes. It didn't take a genius to know why as he surveyed his and Fry's nude forms in one quick glance. His face went completely red, and any words that were in his head were misdirected on the way out the mouth.

Silence screamed between them for moments upon moments, then Fry swallowed hard enough for the both of them to hear, and bolted up out of the bed, only to cry out in pain and fall to the floor from the pain in his ass. He gasped for breath while Bender finally registered the full situation, and he got up quickly to help his best friend. Fry flinched slightly from Bender's sudden touch, but allowed his friend to help him back up to the bed and lie down. Yes, lying down was good. Very good.

Bender covered Fry up, then ran a shaking hand through his platinum hair. What the fuck, what the fuck, what the _fuck_…?! What was he going to do now? He didn't need the absence of alcohol to know that he had ass-fucked his best friend—_best friend_, damn it!—and that Fry was hurting. Badly, from the way he couldn't even fucking stand.

"….Ohhhh….god…." he murmured to himself, pulling on a pair of boxers he had lying around and pacing around. "…Oh, sweet mother of god…." He walked over to his own bed and sat down on it, looking at his shaking hands. The situation was more than he was able to register. Not only did he have sex with a _guy_, but that _guy_ was his _best friend_! Oh, he was going to Hell for this. _Nothing _he'd done in the past compared to this.

A sound from Fry's end of the small room made him turn his head a little to see his friend's form curled up under the sheet. Fry's back was shaking violently and small, choked sounds were barely audible from the small distance. He got up and hesitantly peeked over Fry's shoulder. And he felt his human heart tighten to the borderline of imploding.

He was crying. Really, really crying. Trying not to, but he was. Bender's sense was telling him it was pain and confusion and trauma. The kind of crying that _needed_ comfort.

"Oh, Fry…" he choked, putting a hand on Fry's head and burying his head in the back of Fry's shoulder. "Oh, god, Fry, I'm so sorry…." He clenched his other hand in the covers and kneeled to the floor.

They stayed that way for awhile, forgetting everything but what had happened between them.

Hours—really, hours—later, Bender felt Fry move to turn and looked up. Fry turned over onto his back, wincing slightly, then turning his head the rest of the way to look at Bender's teary eyes full of remorse. He used the heel of his hand to rub the tears away and took a breath.

"Bender," he said in a slightly hoarse voice. "….We…I wont tell…" His voice was surprisingly steady. "I wont tell anyone. I promise…I wont."

Bender blinked. Why was Fry acting like that? Like he had threatened his life with endless, immortal torture if he told anyone…? Oh. Bender felt even guiltier as memories of his old demeanor kicked in. Before the de-fossilization, he _would _have threatened Fry with torture—or death—if something like this had happened.

"Fry…" Bender broke off as he absently leaned up and touched his forehead to his friend's. There was silence, then—

"I wont tell anyone, either, Fry. _I_ promise."

**Sappy, crappy, and full of so much angst I'm hearing Hawthorn Heights in the background. I need more sleep…..**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

The first thing Bender did right after Fry went back to sleep was call up Planet Express. Of course, Leela was the first to answer. Not happily.

"Where the hell are you two!?" she hollered, making Bender hold the phone out at arm's reach. "I don't care how bad a hangover you two idiots have, everyone else is here, so—!"

"Shut your pot-hole, Leela!" Bender yelled back. "I called to say me and Fry wont be in today because…." He looked over his shoulder at Fry, who was slowly turning in his sleep, mumbling something. "….Fry's really sick. He cant even get out of bed."

"What's wrong with him?" Leela asked, her voice softer. Bender racked his brain for anything that sounded excusable.

"I really don't know," he said. "He cant get up without falling down, and he can barely sit up." He paused. "He went back to sleep, but he still looks like he's hurting." He prayed Leela thought it was a headache he was talking about.

"…..Alright…." Leela said from the other end. "Give him an aspirin and we'll see how he does tomorrow." Then she hung up. Bender heaved a sigh of relief and dug around Fry's bathroom cabinet for some medication.

**TIMESKIP—YAY!!!**

Fry had gotten better by the end of the day, and since Thursday was a national holiday or something, they got that day off too, and Fry next to fully recovered for Friday, when he just had an unnoticeable limp. Just as the two promised, neither of them spoke a word of the 'incident', and tried to get on with life as normally as possible.

But everyone noticed that both of them were quieter around each other, didn't fool around quite as much, and whenever they made any kind of physical contact, both would flinch back like the other was on fire.

The biggest change, though, was in Fry. He was a lot more lethargic, had little energy, and after a few weeks, had this look on his face like he was resisting the urge to loose his stomach contents at any given moment.

Everything went completely downhill Thanksgiving day, when everyone was at Planet Express to eat and watch TV until unconsciousness ensued. Fry, who had to step out for some fresh air after feeling woozy again, had been obscurity while Bender helped make the dinner in the kitchen. This time, not only did it taste good, it looked good as well.

"Dinner time, everyone!" Leela called, making everyone jump up from wherever they were and run for the dining room. Fry was the last one in, still looking pale, and sat down just as Bender was knocking Nibbler off the table, away from the food.

"Anyone going to say grace?" Bender asked rhetorically. Zoidburg raised his hand to volunteer, and Bender rolled his eyes and let him. As Zoidburg went on about friendship and long, healthy lives for everyone, Leela heard a small, disturbed noise beside her and peeked her eye open. Fry was sitting there, stiff as a board, his face very pale and slightly green. His chin was quivering and his hands were shaking. The same gagged sound came from his throat, his eyes widening ominously.

"Are you okay, Fry?" she whispered, just as Zoidburg said something about eating the delicious bird, and Fry lost it.

"BATHROOM!" he hollered, jolting up, a hand over his mouth. Everyone was in dead silence, staring at the door he had just left out of, and then grimaced when the sounds of violent retching reached their ears. No one said a word for about a minute, then let out breaths they hadn't realized they'd been holding when the toilet finally flushed. But Fry didn't come back.

Leela, and Bender got up at the same time to go check on Fry while everyone else—appetite slightly diminished—passed around the food. Leela gently knocked on the door. "Fry, are you alright?" she called softly. All she and Bender heard was a groan and a thunk. Leela opened the door to see Fry lying on the floor next to the toilet, pale and looking completely drained. "Fry! Bender, get him on the couch, I'll get the Professor!"

She ran out of the bathroom, leaving Bender to gently turn Fry over and help him into a sitting position. "Fry," he said with concern lacing his voice, "can you walk?" Fry looked at him weakly, and nodded, letting Bender pull him to his feet and help him into the living room, where he collapsed on the couch.

It took Leela a few more minutes to wake the Professor up (he had fallen asleep as soon as Zoidburg had begun grace) and tell him what happened.

"Oh my," he said, turning to his lab. "Bring him in and let's find out what's wrong." Leela went to retrieve him, and Fry was laid down on a gurney as the Professor shooed everyone but Zoidburg out.

Everyone else nibbled at their food and patiently waited while the doctor and professor found out what was wrong with Fry. Bender ate nothing and just leaned against the outside balcony, smoking cigarette after cigarette nervously. He felt 100 percent guilty, thinking he had been the cause of whatever was wrong with Fry. His fourth cigarette paused halfway to his mouth as his brain played out a horrid scenario—what if what he had done was killing Fry?! Fry's illness hadn't happened until the day after, so….

"Bender!"

Bender was snapped out of his thoughts by Amy, who was sticking her head out the door. "Come on, the Professor is done with Fry." Bender flicked the cigarette over the edge and followed her into the Professor's lab, where Fry was sitting on the gurney, minus his shirt, and looking as anxious as Bender felt. Everyone gathered around to hear the Professor's evaluation.

"Three good news, and one bad news," the Professor said cheerfully. "First good news—Fry is perfectly healthy." Everyone stared at him.

"Are you insane, old man?" Bender yelled. "Fry's been sick since Halloween! How can he be healthy?!" Everyone else nodded assent. The Professor tented his fingers and nodded his head.

"That comes to my next bit of news," he said with a hint of mischief. "About eight months ago, I discovered a way to alter the way a human body procreates. I used Fry as a test subject,"—here, Fry's mouth shot open indignantly—"and was able to make it so his body had the ability to house children." Silence. "That brings me to the last bit of good news—Phillip J. Fry is pregnant! I have a cousin now! Wheee!" He grinned and looked around for anyone else to share his glee.

Amy blinked. Leela stared. Hermes and LaBarbara's mouths dropped open. Nibbler licked himself. Bender looked from the Professor to Fry and back again, his face getting paler. Only Zoidburg clasped his claws together and gave a congratulations.

Fry's mouth was doing a very good impression of a fish's as he looked from the Professor to his own stomach. "_**WHAT!?!?**_" he screamed, jumping down from the gurney. "I'm _what!?_" He grabbed the Professor by the coat collar. "_Tell_ me you're joking! _Tell_ me this is a sick joke!"

"Fry, calm down!" Lee said, gently pulling Fry off the Professor. Fry, his eyes full of confused, fearful tears, obeyed and slumped back on the gurney. The Professor regained his composure and readjusted his glasses.

"Like I was saying," he continued. "I say Fry is perfectly healthy because he is showing normal signs of the beginning stages of pregnancy—decreased appetite, sensitivity to smells, and of course, sickness. These symptoms should pass in a month or so.

"However," he continued, his voice sounding slightly confused. "This experiment I performed should have only worked if he were impregnated. As in, under the extremely unlikely situation Fry would turn out to be homosexual."

"So, what you're saying is," Leela said slowly, "is that he would only carry a child if he had sex with another _man_?" The Professor nodded.

"Precisely. And that's what's confusing me—how could he have been impregnated if he…" He broke off when he saw Fry look to the floor, his face red and fists clenching his shirt so tightly his knuckles were snow white. He looked back at the others and saw Bender standing in a cold sweat, his own face almost as white as Fry's knuckles. The Professor looked between the two, then blinked.

"Oh my…." he murmured as the dawning realization came to him. The others looked at him, then at the two men who looked as though they had been caught doing something embarrassing in public.

"No…" Hermes said, his mouth wide open. Amy looked at Bender and blanched.

"Gross!" Cubert exclaimed, making a face. Leela whipped around and practically threw him and Dwight out.

"What the hell, guys?" Leela said after locking the lab door. "_When_-?!"

"My tests indicate he was impregnated,"—here, both Bender and Fry twitched—"sometime Halloween night…."

"…..Wow, Fry," Amy said after a moment. "I didn't know you were _that_ desperate…" Fry's gaze shot up, a hurt look in his eyes. His retort was beaten by Bender's.

"We were _drunk_!" Bender yelled, his fists clenched. "It was an accident!"

Amy snorted. "Some accident…"

"_I'll kill you, Amy_!"

Leela, Hermes, and Zoidburg all had to hold Bender back as he fought to wrap his hands around Amy's neck. They finally calmed him down after a few moments, but kept a nice wall between the two. Fry was near tears by this point.

"Why…?" he asked, looking at his shaking hands. "Why would you do this to me?!" He looked up and glared at the Professor. "_How _could you do this to me?!"

"How was I to know you would end up having sex with Bender?" the Professor defended, though it was a stupid defense and everyone knew it. Fry let out a howl of homicidal tendencies and buried his face in his hands. "If it bothers you that much, Fry, then lie right back down, and I'll take it out of you!"

Fry's head shot back up, his eyes full of shock. "What?" he choked, looking as though the Professor just asked him to shoot Bender in the head. "Are you _insane_, old man!? I would _never_….!" He broke off, shaking his head. "I'm keeping it."

Bender's head snapped up and he looked at Fry. "What?" he asked. Fry looked at him.

"I'm keeping it, Bender," he said firmly, standing up. "It's my responsibility, so I'm keeping it." Bender gaped at him, then stalked over and grabbed Fry by the shoulders.

"Are you insane, Fry?!" he demanded, shaking him a little. "How the hell can you keep a baby?!"

"Don't you mean 'we'?" Fry shot back, narrowing his eyes. "This is half _your_ fault, anyway!"

That hit Bender like a shot to the stomach. He let go of Fry's shoulders and swallowed hard. It was true. It _was _his fault. And more than half, at that. He was broken out of his guilty thoughts when Fry pushed him away and headed for the door.

"Fine," he said, not turning around. "I'll take care of it myself. I'll be moved out tomorrow, Bender. You don't have to worry about it." He walked out, putting his shirt on whilst he did so. He left everyone staring after him, and walked out to the balcony.

As he looked out over the city, he put a hand over his stomach. "Don't worry, baby," he said, rubbing gently. "Daddy will take care of you." He felt a tear leave his eye and run down his face as the full reality hit. But he didn't ask questions about it. He knew it would make any difference.

**More angst, but it gets better. Promise. Really, I do. **


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

After Fry had left, Bender just stood there, a blank look on his face. He didn't mean to make Fry so upset. But what was Fry thinking…? A hand whipping him around by his shoulder made him look up.

"You're just gonna let him walk like that?" Leela demanded, grabbing both Bender's shoulders. "Go after him, Bender! Say something, before he does something stupid!"

"What the hell am I supposed to say!?" Bender demanded. "I don't know what to do with _myself_ at the moment, Leela!"

"Well think fast, because Preggers just caught a cab," Cubert said after walking in, jerking his thumb in the direction of the street. Leela's eye widened. She turned back to the former robot.

"Bender!"

"I'm going!"

**BACK AT THE APARTMENT**

Fry looked around his room and sighed, then began to pick up his clothes and pile them onto the couch. He worked in silence, piling his clothes and folding up his bed things until the space looked almost clean. It didn't matter, though; he'd be moving out soon enough.

The sound of the door opening behind him made him pause, but he didn't turn around. He just resumed stacking his things on the couch, not saying a word.

"…..Fry….?" Bender's voice was soft. Fry still didn't turn around, but his lip began to quiver. "…Fry…" Bender bit his lip and slowly walked toward his roommate.

"Don't worry about it, Bender," Fry said, putting his last shirt in the pile. "I'll be out of here tomorrow…" He turned and went to stack his pillows, still not looking at Bender. Bender looked from him to the clothes pile, then sighed and went over to the pile and picked up a white tee shirt. He turned to the dresser set and put it in the empty drawer.

"No," he said, turning back to Fry. "You're not." Fry turned around finally, a confused look on his face.

"….What…?" he said, wiping the tears from his eyes with the heel of his hand. Bender walked back over to the pile and picked up a pair of pants to put the in another empty drawer.

"I said," Bender drew out, turning back to the clothes pile, "no, you're not leaving. You're going to stay here, in this apartment." Fry stared at him, his hands twisting over the sheet.

"So, what?" Fry asked. "You're going to move out? Then what? The apartment is leased in your name!" Fry began to cry again as he threw down the sheet. Bender sighed and walked over and gently put his arms around his friend. Fry flinched, then gave in and cried into Bender's shoulder. Bender rubbed his hand on Fry's back gently.

"No one's moving out; no one's leaving," Bender said. Fry mumbled something incoherent and sniffed, then pulled back and wiped his tears away.

"So," he said, his voice cracking slightly, "we're going to…?" He broke off, but Bender knew what he meant.

"Yeah," he said. "_We_ are." Fry smiled a little, then blanched and turned slightly green.

"BATHROOM!" he gasped, running past Bender and into the bathroom. Bender heard dry-heaving, then ultimately the sound of liquidated solids hitting the water, followed by, "Oh god, this sucks!" The toilet flushed, and Fry walked back out, holding his aching stomach. He looked sheepishly up at Bender. "I hope this doesn't last too long," he said half-humorously.

Bender gave him a half smile and laid Fry's sheet back on the bed. "Get some rest, Fry," he said. "Before you faint and hurl all over the place."

"Thanks, Bender," Fry said, obeying. He laid down and pulled his sheet over him. He closed his eyes and was nearing REM state when a thought jumped into his head. "Bender," he called over to his roommate, who had put the clothes pile away by that point and was reclining with a bottle of ale. Bender looked over the edge of the couch.

"What?"

"…….We're gonna need a bigger apartment."

**Okeedokee. That's done, and next chapter begins. Yay. **


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

The month to follow was hectic.

Bender and Fry's relationship was on rocks. Smooth rocks, but still rocks. Bender was doing whatever he could to help Fry out; even the small things, like being by Fry's side every time he retched, and trying to quit smoking (or at least do it outside and/or out of Fry's breathing space). Fry was trying not to be a burden, but found it hard to be very independent. Along with his sickness, he also had unpredictable dizzy spells and Bender had to constantly remind him to eat something.

A few weeks before Xmas, however, it was like everything changed overnight. Fry's appetite escalated to unbelievable levels and his emotions were changing at the drop of a hat. Once, Amy made a vague fat joke at how much Fry was eating, and he retaliated by shoving her head in a sink full of water until Bender and Leela pulled him away. Two minutes later, he was humming cheerfully as he ate the cheesecake Leela had made for everyone.

Xmas Eve finally came around, and to make Fry happy (and to avoid a total preggers-mental meltdown due to Santa Bot), they all got Fry something nice. Amy got him some 'mannish' maternity clothes for later. Zoidburg gave him a book on childrearing (though it came from his own species), and Leela gave him an expectant mother's book. The Professor gave him maternity leave and Hermes added onto it by making it _paid_ maternity leave.

There were more presents, but the ominous sound of gunfire outside the force field let them all know it was time to go to sleep and pray they'd be alive by morning.

Everyone drifted off one by one, but Fry couldn't even fathom sleeping. Every explosion and crash made him clutch his abdomen tighter protectively; scenarios playing in his head that made him want to cry. One particular explosion not to far away made the building shake, and he couldn't restrain a sob. He then nearly jumped when he felt an arm curl around him from behind.

"You doin' okay?" came Bender's soft voice. Truthfully, Fry shook his head as tears ran down his face. Bender sighed and pulled Fry closer so he was spooning him comfortingly. "It's gonna be okay, Fry," he said. "Just go to sleep and it'll be over in a few hours."

Fry nodded and relaxed against the protection of Bender's body, his head resting on one of Bender's arms. Bender's free arm curled gently tighter, his hand resting on Fry's stomach.

Finally, Fry was able to sleep just as the clock struck midnight.

The first person to wake up was Leela, who yawned, stretched, and looked around. Her eye rested on Bender and Fry, and she had to smile. Sometime in the night, both of Bender's arms had wrapped around Fry's middle and Fry was using both his folded hands for a pillow. The whole image was so cute, she _had_ to get a picture. She was finally satisfied with five shots from different angles, and she gently shook Amy awake.

"Awww," she softly squealed, "that's so cute!" Hermes, LaBarbara, and Zoidburg woke up around the same time, and had basically the same reaction before leaving the room to make breakfast and survey the damage.

Dwight and Cubert woke up, saw the sleeping duo, took pictures, and hid them in the Blackmail Folder for later.

The Professor woke up and went to deactivate the security system, blissfully unaware of the two entirely.

So Fry and Bender were the last to wake up. Fry woke up first, blinking the sleep from his eyes, then attempted to sit up only to find arms around his waist prevented him from doing so. He looked over his shoulder at the still sleeping Bender, who looked quite content. Fry felt his face grow warm as Bender shifted slightly and accidentally rubbed his crotch against Fry's hindend.

"Bender, wake up!" he said without really meaning to be so loud. Or frantic. Or to have his voice crack that high a pitch.

"I swear the window was already broken, Officer!" Bender yelled, shooting up and looking around, slightly disoriented. He finally awoke to full consciousness to find one arm still securely around Fry, who was red in the face. "Oh, sorry!" he said, quickly withdrawing it.

"N-no problem," Fry stuttered, willing the heat in his face to disappear. He blinked, then shot up and ran toward the bathroom. Bender looked after him and scratched his head.

"I thought he got over his sickness," he said to himself.

"He did," said Leela, coming in to check on them. He turned to look at her. "Pregnancy does things to the bladder," she explained pointe-blank.

"Ah," Bender said, understanding. Leela was silent for a moment, then walked over to were the stack of yet-to-be-opened presents were, and picked up another book.

"Here," she said, handing it to him. "I meant to give this to you last night." He took it and looked at the title.

**What to Expect When She's Expecting**

He looked at her, eyebrow raised. She shrugged.

"They don't have anything on male pregnancy yet," she said with a hint of sarcasm. A crash came from the kitchen. "Goddamn it, Amy!" She turned and ran for the kitchen just as Fry came back from the bathroom. He walked over to the couch and sat down with a small huff and looked at his stomach, which Bender noticed Fry had been doing a lot of lately.

"You okay?" he asked, getting up to sit next to him. Fry nodded.

"Yeah," he responded, putting a hand on his stomach. "Just….thinking…." He paused. "….About stuff…." He stroked his thumb over the shirt-covered stomach and sighed.

"…..Like what?" Bender asked, leaning his head on his fist. Fry blushed slightly.

"…..Like…..y'know….what it's gonna be…..what we're gonna name it…." His blush deepened. "….How the hell it's gonna come out……Stuff like that."

Bender's face tinged slightly pink at that last part. "Ah," he said. There was silence, then Bender voiced a question that had been on his mind for awhile. "Hey, Fry?" Fry looked at him attentively. "…Why did you blow up like that back when the Professor suggested you abort?"

Fry's face fell completely solemn and his eyes grew misty. "Oh, that…." he said in a hollow voice. "…It just reminded me of this….incident….when Yancy and I got into this big fight. He said that Mom and Dad had said they wanted to abort me so that I wouldn't be a waste of money." Bender blinked, but said nothing. "And I asked Mom and Dad, and they didn't really agree to what Yancy said, but…." He broke off, his breath hitching and tears coming to his eyes. "…But they didn't deny it, either…"

He took a shaky breath and let it out. "…I swore I would never even let the thought of abortion pass through my skull if I ever got a girl pregnant. I wouldn't even let her abort it. I would take it and raise it myself if she didn't want it…." He broke off into a sad laugh. "But now, _I'm_ the one with the baby. _I'm_ the one responsible for another life inside of me. I'd _never_ think about taking that life away…."

Bender felt something in his gut wrench as Fry let his heart out. And that was when it hit him. He was going to be a parent. He was also responsible for the baby, not just Fry. The baby may be inside of Fry, but it was also a part of him. Almost like an instinct, Bender leaned over and pulled Fry to him and just held him. Fry froze with surprise for a moment, and then hugged back.

"I'll take care of you, Fry," Bender said so softly Fry almost didn't hear. "You, and our kid." Fry pulled back and wiped a tear from his eye.

"Thanks, Bender," he said, blushing slightly. "I…I'd kiss you, but…." Bender reached a hand out, caught Fry's chin, and pulled him in slightly for a gentle, quick kiss.

"Call that one a freebie," he said with a charismatic smirk. Fry flushed a richer shade of red and Bender stood up, helping Fry up, too. "C'mon, let's go see what the jerkwads made for breakfast, I'm starving!"

Fry laughed and they both went into the kitchen for breakfast, leaving their respective books side-by-side on the coffee table to be read later.

**Merry Xmas to all, and to all shut the hell up and review! I love j00…**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter7**

Xmas came and went, and New Years was just around the corner. Fry was now almost two months into pregnancy, and everyone noticed that he was acquiring a certain glow. (Which turned into an aura of evil as soon as his emotions went kaput). Of course, Bender had to run out and restock the apartment with food every three days, and what added to the work was that the Professor had given him a 'food guide' of acceptable and healthy foods for Fry to eat. He said that indulging snacks were good for once and awhile, but that would make Fry gain too much weight.

Bender's book had said pretty much the same thing; while it was almost mandatory to run out and get whatever he could find, it said to limit certain foods high in cholesterol and fat. This meant he had to personally take all the Slurm and alcohol out of the apartment and restock it at Planet Express, where more people could guard it. But it was almost worth all the trouble, when he would come home with armfuls of food and the look of gratitude on Fry's face brightened the room as he helped unload the groceries.

On New Year's Eve, Fry and Bender headed over to Planet Express for the New Years party.

"It kinda sucks I can't drink beer," Fry said as they walked down the street. Bender gave him a sympathetic look and Fry looked at him. "It also sucks you can't have beer in your own apartment."

"Nah, it's alright," Bender said, shrugging. "I don't really have much of a tolerance for it anymore." Bender knew already that part of Fry's 'emotional problems' included frequent guilty thoughts—mostly about him. Like it was Fry's fault that Bender had to run out all the time, or that he had to give up drinking and smoking for the sake of Fry and the baby. But Bender kept—honestly—reassuring him that it wasn't that bad at all, and to quit worrying about it.

They finally made it to their destination and walked in to greet everyone. "We're here!" Fry called out, hanging his coat up. Bender followed suit and they all walked into a dimly lit dining/living room. "Guys?" Fry checked his watch. "I thought they said be here by…?"

"SURPRISE!"

Fry jumped, then smiled as the lights went on and everyone cheered, holding up a handmade banner that said _**Happy New Years/Baby Shower, Fry!!!**_ There was a huge cake with white, blue, and pink icing, piles of presents, and all of his friends. He felt tears well up. "Oh, you guys…" He ran up and hugged Leela first, then Hermes. "You didn't have to…!"

"Sure we did, Fry!" Hermes said, hugging him back. Well, Leela said they had to, and no one wanted to get roundhouse kicked in the head so…yeah. But he kept that thought to himself as Fry went to admire the cake.

"This is awesome!" Fry breathed, looking at the meticulous culinary artwork. Bender stepped up behind him and cleared his throat.

"Thank you," he said with (half) mock-vanity. Fry turned to look at him.

"_You_ made this, Bender?" he asked, surprised. Bender rolled his eyes.

"Duh," he said, crossing his arms. "Cakes are my third-best specialty."

"Huh?" Amy asked. "What's your first and second?"

"Italian and soylent green."

Silence ensued.

"Anyway…" said Leela, turning to Fry, who was picking icing off and eating it. She let him; it was his party. "Let's start the party! We do have games—one I think you'll like, Bender."

"What?" Bender asked, curious. Leela held up betting sheets.

"Bets on whether it's a boy or a girl," she said. Everyone snatched a sheet and put their bets right away. After putting their bet and wager, Leela recollected them and counted them off. "Let's see," she said. "Amy, girl….Hermes, boy…LaBarbara, boy…Professor..." She paused. "'Fembot'?" Everyone looked at the Professor. He looked back.

"What? You never know…."

"Whatever," Leela said. "Me, girl…Bender, girl…?" Everyone looked at Bender, who looked back.

"What?" he said like the Professor. "If it is a girl, it'll give me an excuse to beat up annoying teenagers when she's older." Everyone rolled their eyes at the typical Bender response.

But Bender really did want a girl. He had read in his book that baby girls tend to be more attached to the father, and a little part in Bender's psyche wanted to spoil his kid. But he kept that part to himself.

"Presents!" Fry called out, running for the pile. Leela grabbed him by his collar.

"Later," she said. "Who wants cake?" Fry raised his hand, practically drooling. She sighed. "Fine. Fry gets first piece."

"Yay!"

Leela got the pleasant task of cutting the cake and keeping Fry's hands out of it. Also, Fry kept coming back for more. ….And more, and more…. She finally took off the smallest top layer and put it on a large plate. He took it happily and went to sit on the couch to eat it.

"You like the cake, Fry?" Amy asked, looking at him while he took huge bites of cake. Fry's fork paused halfway to his mouth as he glared at Amy. Bender sat down next to Fry and quickly intervened.

"Of course he likes it," he said vainly. "_I_ was the one who made it, naturally." Amy rolled her eyes and went to get something to drink. "Bitch," Bender mumbled as he settled comfortably next to Fry. He turned to the pregnant one. "You like the cake?"

"Love it!" Fry said, taking the bite he had forgotten. "It's so good! When did you make it?"

"This morning, when I 'went out for groceries'," Bender responded. "Leela already did the shopping; all I did was make the cake and grab the stuff she bought. Then while you were taking a nap, I went back and decorated it."

Fry smiled warmly at him and ate the last bite, licking the frosting off the fork. "Sweet," he said.

"The icing or me?"

"…..Both….."

Leela looked over at the two while listening to their conversation and smiled. It was so cute, she took out her camera and took a picture (or three) before finally getting her own cake and sitting down to enjoy it.

In place of booze, there was sparkling juice and ginger ale, which was okay for everyone. Then there were more games (most of which hardly anyone enjoyed), and then…

"Presents!" Fry yelled enthusiastically. Leela rolled her eye and groaned.

"Fine, presents," she mumbled. "But sit down and we'll bring them to you!" Fry obeyed, and everyone went to go pick up their respective presents to give to Fry. Leela gave Fry hers first. Fry took it and began to carefully unwrap it.

"Wow, Leela!" he said, taking out an already-started family scrapbook. It started with the cover, with picture slots labeled **Mom, Dad, **and **Baby**. Leela had taken the liberty of putting the best picture of Fry in the **Mom** slot, and an edited picture of Bender, as both a robot and human in the **Dad** slot. He tilted it to show Bender, who snorted, but smiled.

Amy had gotten Fry a pack of condoms. "AMY!!!"

**SEVERAL UNMENTIONABLE MOMENTS LATER….**

Amy was well incapacitated, and the party ensued. Hermes gave Fry a 'pregnancy bonus' on his pay, and LaBarbara gave Fry a homemade book of pregnant-friendly recipes. Zoidburg gave him another book—**Stories for Your Little Decapodian**. The Professor handed Fry a key.

"What's this?" Fry asked, looking at it. The Professor smiled.

"Oh, nothing," he said mysteriously. "Just a key to the new addition I made to the building; a three-bedroom new addition…" Fry looked at him oddly.

"Eh?"

"He means he's giving you a bigger living space for when the baby's born!" Leela said, clarifying. "It's rent-free, too." Fry gaped at her, the Professor, the key in his hand, then Bender.

"….Bender," he said softly, "…I think we found the solution to our housing problem…"

"Yep…" Bender replied, looking and sounding almost disbelieving. "You're not bullshitting us, are you?" he demanded, staring hard at the Professor.

"Oh my, no!" the Professor reassured, waving a hand to emphasize. "The extra living space is just for you, Fry, and the baby—free of charge. Only the best for my new cousin…Take that, Wernstrom!" he suddenly added, dramatically shaking his fist at the figment in his head. He calmed down, cleared his throat, and continued, "You can move in as soon as you want."

"Thank you, Professor!" Fry said, handing the key to Bender, who put it in his shirt pocket. He took a swift look at everyone. "Thank you, everyone. Except you, Amy," he added darkly, glaring at the unconscious Martian. "Thanks for your gifts. I mean, you really didn't have to do this for me." He wiped a tear from his eye. "You're all the best bunch of friends I could ever have hoped for!"

A collective 'aww' resounded, accompanied by 'thank yous' and one 'finally, I'm a real friend!'. After putting his tangible gifts in a neat stack, Fry suddenly yawned and leaned unconsciously on Bender's shoulder, looking really tired.

"Tired already, Fry?" Hermes asked. Fry nodded, yawning again.

"Yeah," he said. "Been falling asleep early nowadays. Guess it's the pregnancy…" He broke off, closing his eyes and suddenly diving into sleep.

Leela looked at the clock on the wall. 11:52.

"Hey," she said softly, "let's go into the docking area and let Fry sleep." Everyone nodded and quietly exited the room, sans Bender, who just located the remote (under his ass) and turned on the TV, keeping the volume to a minimum so as not to wake Fry up as some unimportant BS about the Stereotypical French nation informed everyone who gave a damn. Which he didn't.

Fry shifted slightly in his sleep, muttering something garbled and incoherent. Bender shifted his gaze to look at the redhead and smiled to himself. He gently relocated Fry's head to his lap and put an arm loosely over Fry's body, then changed the channel to an **All My Circuits** New Year's marathon recap. The New Year could kiss the fattest part of his flesh-covered ass for all he really cared.

**My friend asked me if I was going to make a chapter for every month of Fry's pregnancy. I hadn't noticed before, really, but for verification, I shall put your now piqued minds to rest—Probably. Depends on how lazy I feel. **


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

The month of January passed without much to speak of, aside from Fry and Bender moving into their new living space, which was awesome. The Professor had neglected to mention that it was not only three bedrooms, but a bathroom, and their own living room. Fry was speechless when he saw it and spent the whole day checking the place out.

His and Bender's rooms had a conjoined bathroom with two sinks and a large shower/tub. The third bedroom for the baby was smaller, and right next to Fry's bedroom with a conjoined door for quick access. The living room had its own couch, TV, and mini bar. They moved in right away.

And then the chilly month of February came into play, decorating the city with Valentine's Day décor. Fry was a full three months into his pregnancy, and a week before Valentine's Day, Bender was just getting out of the shower when he heard Fry call him from his room. He threw a towel around his waist and went into Fry's room, where said roommate was standing in front of the full-length closet mirror wearing only a pair of unzipped pants, his body in profile.

"What's wrong?" Bender asked, squeezing the water out of his hair. Fry waved him over and pointed to his stomach, which was probably why his pants were unzipped. His lower belly was protruding, but it looked different than the beer gut Fry used to have. It was somewhat rounder, to start. Fry took Bender's hand and put it on the bulge.

It felt hard, rather than fatty. Bender looked up at Fry, who had that glow on his face. "It's growing," he said, grinning a little. Fry nodded enthusiastically.

"Neat," he said. He rubbed his stomach, then looked down at his pants. "I think it's time to change into those…er…other clothes." Bender snorted, earning a sucker punch in the arm. "Shut up, Bender," he said, but with a laugh. He went into his closet, and a few seconds later, a pair of pants found themselves launched at Bender's head.

**ONE WEEK LATER**

It was Valentine's Day, and since there were no deliveries to be made, everyone was happy to have the day off to spend with their valentines. Leela found herself a boyfriend, and was spending the day with him. Kif was taking Amy shopping for a dress for a concert they were going to later. Cubert and Dwight had girlfriends (and school) and Zoidburg was 'dating' a nice lobster he found while scrounging for food at the docks. The Professor had started an online relationship with someone known only as 'Lisa'.

Which left Bender and Fry both free for Valentine's Day. Fry was having another 'guilty moment' as he watched Bender make some lunch for the both of them. Bender hadn't said much all day, aside from the usual 'good morning' and 'what do you want for breakfast?'. He just knew that it was because of him Bender had no one to spend Valentine's Day with, aside from him—the guy he knocked up. He restrained himself from crying as Bender loaded up the food and set it down on the table in front of Fry.

"…..You okay, Fry?" Bender asked when he saw that Fry hadn't touched the food. Fry poked at the meat with his fork and looked up, putting on his best smile.

"Just fine," he said as cheerfully as he could. He put his fork down. "Hey, Bender, after lunch, why don't you go out? You've been stuck in the place all week. You look like you could use some fresh air; maybe a beer or something."

Bender stared at Fry, then put his own fork down. "Okay, Fry," he said seriously. "What's _really_ wrong?" Fry's fake smile faltered slightly.

"N-nothing, Bender," he said. "I really want you to go out; relax, y'know?" He broke off when Bender sat up straight, crossed his arms, and gave him a 'look'. "I…er…." Bender blinked and resumed the 'look'. Fry sighed and dropped his arms to his lap. "Bender, you don't have to have Valentine's Day be a total waste because of me," he finally admitted. "Don't let me be your excuse for not finding someone to share it with." He lowered his head and fought like hell to not cry. 'Don't cry, don't cry, don't _fucking_ cry,' he thought to himself. He heard Bender push back his chair and stand up, then walk out of the dining room and toward their living area.

Fry didn't bother lifting his head up. Instead, he began to eat the food Bender made for him, feeling guilty that it was made so good for him. He finished eating, then looked across the small table at Bender's untouched food, and took that, too. Just as he was finishing eating it, he heard the door slide open and Bender come back in. Fry didn't turn around. He just figured Bender had taken his advice and was getting ready to go out and lowered his head again.

He was about to tell Bender to have fun when he heard Bender put something on the table in front of him. He looked up to see a heart-shaped box of candy in front of him, accompanied by a card. He looked up at Bender in question.

"I was saving these for later tonight," he said sheepishly. "But I guess now is a good time to give them to you." Fry felt his throat tighten as he looked at his gifts. Bender must have noticed, because he gave Fry a light hug and a kiss on top of the head. "And you don't have to worry at all about me. I _choose_ to stay here with you." He picked up the card and handed it to Fry.

Fry blinked a few times to clear his vision, then opened the card. Inside was a photo he hadn't seen before; he blushed. He could tell it was from Christmas because it was when Bender had both arms around him and they were both sleeping. Looking past the photo, he read the card.

_**Forget the Cyclopes who took this picture, and be MY valentine. We can kill her together. **_

_**With Love, Bender**_

Fry let out a bark of tearful laughter and turned to hug Bender. "That was the most romantic thing ever!" he gasped between laughter. He thought about what he just said, and flushed red. Bender smirked at him, took Fry's face in one hand, and leaned down to kiss him softly. When he pulled back, Fry's face was even redder.

"Thank you," he said. He went back over to his side of the table and paused. "…Did you eat my food?" Fry grinned a little.

"You snooze, you lose, Valentino," he said. Bender mock-scowled.

"For that," he said ominously, "you're sharing the candy."

**LATER THAT NIGHT…**

"I feel kind of bad, leaving those two alone at home," Leela told Amy as the latter got ready to go to the concert with Kif. Leela was waiting for her new boyfriend Alex to pick her up. "Neither of them have a Valentine's date."

"Sucks for them," Amy said, checking her makeup for the umpteenth time.

"Amy!"

"What? So they don't have dates this year—big deal. They'll get 'em next year. Bender's kinda cute, and women love single dads."

Leela tilted her head to the side. "True," she said. She checked her watch. "I'd better go check on them before Alex gets here." She left the living room and went to the addition. She opened the door and went to their living area, then paused short.

The TV was on, playing a Valentine's special of **All My Circuits**, while Bender sat on one end of the couch. Fry's head was in his lap, and he was apparently sleeping while Bender carded his fingers through his hair. Two empty boxes of candy sat on the coffee table next to two cards and three roses tied together with a ribbon.

Leela smiled and silently backed out of their living area.

"I don't think we need to worry," she said to Amy, just as the doorbell rang. "Yours or mine?"

**February is gone. March is on its way. YAY!!!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

**Okay, I decided to skip past March and head to April. The only good thing about March is that the Globetrotters come to my state.**

Winter melted into spring. Wet spring. As soon as April hit, so did the rain. And there was almost nothing worse than a bored, pregnant ADD who constantly voiced his boredom. Loudly.

Fry didn't go out as much anymore; he was a little self-conscious about his increasingly enlarging stomach while the rest of him remained the same; thinner, if anything. Bender had read in his book that a lot of women would start to feel 'fat', even if they never were, and that they needed reassurance that that wasn't the case.

……Of course, the book continued in saying that women liked to hear that they were beautiful, but Bender didn't know how Fry would react if he said _that_. But every time he would walk into Fry's room and see him examining himself in profile in the mirror with that look of awe on his face, he had to admit the glow Fry had as he gently touched his stomach was rather….

……Beautiful. There was really no other word to describe it. By April when Fry was nearly six months in and it was _really_ showing, Fry would spend more time in front of the mirror—sans or plus a shirt, it didn't matter—just looking at his belly.

Nearing the Professor's birthday, Bender was preparing to go to bed when a sound of Fry's room made him blink and sit up a little. There was nothing more, so he laid back down and closed his eyes.

"_Oh my god! Bender!_"

Bender sat up so fast he actually fell out of bed. Ignoring the pain in his ass, Bender shot up and ran through their conjoined bathroom and into Fry's bedroom, where Fry was sitting up in bed, his lamplight on and holding his swollen belly. "What's wrong?!" Bender demanded, his heart thumping violently against his chest. Fry beckoned him over with his hand and threw the blankets off his body.

"Bender…" Fry said, his voice disbelieving. "….I felt it!" Bender blinked.

"What?" Fry grabbed his hand and put it on his belly. There was nothing, then Bender's pulse fluttered when he felt a gentle thump against his hand. "Oh, my god…." Bender muttered, his eyes going wide. He looked up at Fry, whose eyes were shining. "….It…kicked…"

"Yeah," Fry breathed. There was a blissful silence between them for a long time. Bender's hand gently stroked Fry's stomach, wishing he could felt the small kick again. He stopped when Fry giggled and shifted from the ticklishness. Then both looked back down when they felt another small thump.

"That's my kid…" Bender said. Fry laughed lightly.

"Yep," he said. "Your kid. A real kicker when I'm trying to sleep." Bender looked at him.

"What?"

"Never mind." Bender rolled his eyes and moved to get up. "Night, Fry."

"Night, Bender." Fry laid back down and pulled the covers over him and nestled into his pillow, turning to his side. He closed his eyes and then smiled when a light kiss was placed on his temple.

**THE NEXT DAY**

It was the annual monthly checkup that the Professor insisted upon. The Professor was taking extra precautions with Fry, what with the living space right next to his own. He not only wanted to make sure the first ('normal') human male pregnancy went without a hitch, but he also wanted to make sure that his new cousin—which he had and Wernstrom _didn't_, haha—was perfectly healthy.

"Good news, Fry," the Professor said as he checked out some computer whatchamacallit. "The baby is perfectly healthy and developing normally."

"That's good to know," Fry said, relieved. The Professor turned to a printer thingy and retrieved something. "But I did notice something…"

"What?" Bender asked, helping Fry sit up. Fry put his arms in the shirtsleeves and buttoned it up. The Professor was making 'thinking' noises.

"I noticed that even thought the baby is developing normally," he finally said, "it's developing slowly. From diagrams of other pregnant women, Fry, you should be bigger around the middle than you are. From looking at prior checkup notes, the baby is developing slower than normal.

"This isn't bad, though, because you don't have the normal hormones and hospitable regions as women," he assured. "But I think that the entire pregnancy as a whole will be…oh…two or three months longer than normal."

Fry stared. "You mean I'm going to be pregnant for a year?" he asked. Prof. Farnsworth nodded.

"Oh yes," he said. "At least."

Fry groaned. "Oh well," he said. Bender helped him off the examination gurney. He noticed the Professor holding what came out of the printer. "What's that?" he asked, pointing to it.

"The wuh?" The Professor looked down. "Oh, it's your baby." He handed it to Fry. "Though I don't know the sex yet; it's hiding that quite effectively." Fry looked down and felt something in his heart swell.

It was a 3-D picture; and sure enough, the baby, not fully developed yet, was curled up away from the camera front shot. Bender looked at the picture too and smiled.

"Is it just me," he said, "or is it flipping the camera off?" Fry looked again and saw that one of the underdeveloped fingers was slightly raised than the others. Fry snorted.

"I thinking naming it Bender Bending Rodriguez, Jr. if it's a boy," he joked. Bender tilted his head, a thoughtful look on his face.

"Maybe," he said. "What if it's a girl?"

"I dunno," Fry replied, shrugging. "You pick. I'll pick if it's a boy."

"I thought we were naming it after me?"

"…….."

"I was joking, Fry."

**Yep. That's April. Next comes May. Does anyone else notice that April, May, and June are respective girls' names? Yeah, you do. You do. **


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

It was now May. The rain was gone, sun was shining, and Bender was trying desperately to get Fry out of the house. Fry was just a little bit nervous about going out in public pregnant, but Bender kept saying that everything would be fine and that no one would really notice. The Professor said that some fresh air and exercise would be good for him and the baby, and Leela said she would come along for some 'extra backup'.

Finally, they got Fry to go out on the 14th, but they seemed to be a little off that day. First, Bender made Fry breakfast and brought it to him. When Fry was done eating, Leela came over with some new clothes for him—a dark blue button-up shirt and black pants that looked expensive. When he asked about them, she told him that they were taking him somewhere special. Leela had neatly brushed Fry's hair, which had grown longer from not getting it cut, and they headed out.

"Where are we going?" Fry asked for the umpteenth time. Leela whacked him in the head.

"You'll find out when we get there," she said. Fry groaned and let them lead him to whereverthehell they were going. He soon found himself at the park, where families were gathered for picnics and such.

"What's all that about?" Fry asked, gesturing at all the families.

"Well, just look," Leela said. Fry did. It took him a little while to notice that the children were bringing their mothers flowers and the husbands were cuddling up to their wives.

"….So…?" Both Bender and Leela rolled their eyes. Leela grabbed Fry's shoulders and turned him in the direction of a flash-board.

_**HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY**_

Fry's eyes widened. "Oh, I completely forgot!" he said, smacking his head. "Today's Mother's Day!" He paused. "Oh…" He looked at Bender, blushing. "But…I'm not technically a 'mother' yet…"

"It doesn't matter," Bender said, putting his hand lightly on Fry's stomach. "You're a 'mom' all the same." He took Fry's hand and led him to a vacant spot under a tree. After they got comfortable, Leela voiced a question she'd had on her mind for awhile.

"Hey, Fry," she said. "When the baby's born, are you going to be 'Mom', or 'Dad'?" Fry thought for a moment.

"Well," he said slowly. "Bender's already got the 'Dad' slot filled, so I guess I'm gonna be the 'Mom'."

"Well that's gonna be hard to explain at the PTA meetings," Bender said humorously. Fry snorted.

"Nah," he said. "We'll just give the name 'Farnsworth' and that'll clear _everything _up."

"He's got a point," Leela said. They shared a laugh over that, then relaxed to enjoy the lovely Sunday mid-morning. It was awhile before Bender looked over to see that Leela was reading something and Fry had fallen asleep, his head resting on Bender's shoulder. Bender smiled and sighed. It'd been awhile since he'd felt so content, and he wanted it to last.

After awhile, he became vaguely aware that someone was talking to him, and snapped out of his Zen-state.

"Eh?"

"I said," Leela said, "do you want any ice cream?" Bender looked up and over to see an ice cream vendor. Fry was awake, and looking at the vendor with happy hunger.

"Uh, yeah," Bender said. "Vanilla." Leela got up to go get the ice cream, leaving Bender and Fry momentarily alone. "So," he said, lightly touching Fry's fingertips with his own. "How do you like your Sunday Mother's Day so far?"

Fry shifted his gaze up in a thinking gesture. "It's nice," he finally said. He put his hand on his stomach. "I'm having a nice time just relaxing outside with my two best friends and my baby—I cant think of anything else I'd rather be doing." He paused. "Well, maybe _one_ thing, but it's kinda banned while pregnant."

Several of many things that 'one thing' could be ran through Bender's mind, but he ignored it and just sighed.

"Got it," said Leela, carrying some ice cream cups in a tray. "Chocolate for Fry, vanilla for Bender…" She passed out the cups to her friends. "…And strawberry for me." She sat back down under the tree and they began to eat their treats.

"Yup, this is us," Fry said, catching their attentions. "Fry, Bender, and Leela—we go together like Neapolitan ice cream." Bender and Leela smiled at the analogy and had to agree. But it was Leela who noticed that it was chocolate and vanilla that were always side-by-side in the packaging, and smiled to herself at her own analogy.

She snuck a peek at her two friends. She had been watching the two of them lately, and noticed that they had been growing much closer than 'just friends', and even past 'best friends'. Bender was so protective of Fry now, and did anything for him just to see him happy. And Fry had grown a dependence to Bender, always wanting him near. Even more recently, on more than one occasion, she had seen Bender be rather touchy-feely affectionate—hugging Fry from behind, his hands gently caressing Fry's stomach; putting his arm around Fry when the latter fell asleep or leaned against him; even kissing Fry on the cheek every once and awhile.

Realizing her ice cream was melting, Leela broke out of her thoughts and began to spoon it into her mouth.

After ice cream was done with, Leela pulled something out of her pack. "Hey Fry," she said, getting his attention. He turned to her.

"Yeah?" She handed him a small wrapped package with a tiny card attached to it.

"Happy Mother's Day." Fry took the package and smiled, blushing a little. He picked up the small card and read it:

_**Please Don't Kill Me**_

He raised an eyebrow, but opened the paper anyway. It looked like a photo album. He opened the album, looked at the first few photos, then blushed furiously. "Leela!"

"What?" Bender asked, leaning over to look. His face flushed slightly. "Leela!"

"Don't blame me entirely," Leela said in defense. "Some of those came from those two little bastards' blackmail stash. If anything, _thank_ me for giving them to you!"

Fry closed the album and gave it to Bender. "Remind me to put Cubert's head in the trash compactor," Fry muttered.

"And I'll stuff Dwight in the deep freeze," Bender added. Fry and Bender shared an ominous evil look, which dissipated when Fry suddenly yawned. "What was that?" Bender asked, amused.

"I guess it's all the fresh air," Fry said, blinking and rubbing his eyes. He heaved a sigh and leaned back against the tree, then shifted. "This is getting uncomfortable…"

"Here," Bender said, gently sitting Fry up. He carefully maneuvered him so Fry was leaning against his chest between his legs. Fry relaxed instantly as Bender folded his arms across his chest. "Better?"

"Lots," Fry responded.

Leela wished she had the camera.

**This is a two-parter. It's just four in the morning and I'm tired. So, TBC. **


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

_**So sorry for the wait—computer trouble. It sucks….Well, here's part 2 of the Mother's Day episode! Yay!!!**_

A few hours at the park, and then Leela said it was time to go. Bender gently woke Fry up and helped him to his feet, and they left to go get some lunch.

"Where?" Fry asked. Leela rolled her eye and shook her head. Bender put his arm around Fry's shoulders.

"Does it really matter?" he asked. Fry thought for a moment.

"No. Not really. As long as the food's good."

"That's the spirit."

**AT WHEREVER THEY WERE GOING**

"We're here," Leela said as they came to a fancy-looking restaurant Fry hadn't seen before.

"Where's here?" Fry asked, tilting his head to the side to glance at it. Leela pointed at a neon sign that flashed:

_**Mothers Eat for Free!!!**_

"Oh." Fry paused. "But guys, I already told you—I'm not a mother yet!"

"I checked with the manager earlier," Leela said. "He said expectant mothers are included, too."

"Oh," Fry said again. Then he blushed a little. "Guys…?"

"What now?" Bender asked.

"…..I'm….not a girl…."

"It doesn't really matter," Leela said. "They have a scanner at the door that verifies pregnancy—not gender. All they'll know is you're pregnant. For all they know, you're just a butch woman."

"……Thanks, Leela…."

"No problem."

All three of them walked in after the next couple who had their little boy in tow, and Fry felt a light tingle as the scanner Leela mentioned earlier ran over his body, and a light 'ding' resound, which Fry took as his pregnancy verification.

"How many?" said the hostess, looking at them.

"Three. One mother," Leela said, pointing to Fry, "the father,"—she pointed to Bender—"and a friend." The hostess looked at Fry, his stomach, then nodded.

"This way," she said. Fry let out a breath he wasn't aware he'd been holding and followed the hostess to their table, holding onto Bender's arm. They were seated, and left to their choosing.

"What's good for you, Fry?" Bender asked, picking his teeth absently. Fry looked over his menu, his eyes widening fractionally with each choice.

"Damn, I dunno," he said. "This stuff's expensive, guys, jeeze…."

"That doesn't matter, Fry," Leela said reassuringly. "Just pick whatever you want; besides, you eat for free, remember?"

"Right," Fry replied, looking at his menu again. "I'm just wandering what their limit is…"

"It's all-you-can-eat," answered a passing waitress. "So don't worry, ma'am!" Bender snorted behind his menu, then winced when both Fry and Leela kicked him under the table. Fry's face now clashed horribly with his hair as he hid his face behind the menu.

"I'm not making fun of you, Fry," Bender said after his leg regained feeling. "You don't need to be embarrassed; I'm sorry." Fry looked up and gave him a weak smile.

"'S'okay, Bender," Fry replied, though his face remained red. He put his menu down.

"You know what you want?" Leela asked, following suit. Fry nodded and almost shyly pointed to about six different items on the menu list. Both Leela and Bender sweatdropped.

"It's your day, Fry," Leela said. Bender put his menu down just as a perky waitress came up. Perky in more ways than one, just saying now.

"You guys know what you want?" she asked in a preppy-ish tone that made all three of them wince.

"Yeah," Leela said. "I'd like item number 8, please, with iced tea."

"Uh-huh…" The waitress touch-screened her mini clipboard. "And you, ma'am?" Fry again flushed slightly.

"Uh, I'd like items 2,6,9, 13, 14, and 21 with some orange juice." The waitress raised a penciled-in eyebrow, but touched his order in.

"A mommy-to-be, huh?" she asked good-naturedly, but teasingly. Fry deepened a shade and nodded. "Cute." She turned to Bender, and all three of them noticed her look turn flirty.

"And for the handsome gentleman?" she said in a more sultry voice. Bender quirked an eyebrow.

"Eh…12 and 15 with iced tea…" he said slowly. The waitress touched his order in and smiled at him.

"I'll be right back," she said, winking at him. She brushed against his shoulder purposely as she walked away. Bender restrained a shudder of revolt and turned to his friends.

Leela was looking at Fry with an apprehensive look on her face, and Fry was looking like he was about to throw the table out the window. Both Leela and Bender thought the air around the table dropped about 10 degrees.

"What a bimbo," Leela muttered, a look of disgust on her face. Fry muttered something the other two didn't catch and just looked out the window with a stone-set expression. Bender felt his heart clench, and inconspicuously reached his hand under the table to hold onto Fry's. He watched at Fry's expression gently softened into a hint of a smile and relaxed.

A few moments later, the waitress came back with the food. She didn't say a word to Fry or Leela, but gave Bender a chirpy "Here you go, sweetie," and bent down just a little too much in putting his food down. Bender felt Fry's hand clench his almost painfully and resisted a wince. She left with another brush to his shoulder, and nearly whimpered as he felt something pop in his poor hand.

"Calm down, Fry," Leela whispered, noticing Bender's pained expression. Fry closed his eyes, released a breath, and loosened his grip on Bender's hand. Bender sighed with relief and withdrew his hand.

"Don't let her ruin your day, Fry," Bender said. Fry gave him an understanding look and all three of them dug into their food.

"So Fry," Leela said a little while in. "Any ideas for baby names?" Fry finished swallowing his food and nodded.

"A few," he said. "But only if it's a boy. I gave Bender free reign of names if it's a girl."

"And what've you got so far?" Leela asked. Fry's cheeks went pink.

"Well," he said hesitantly. "I just know if it's a boy, he's gonna kick my ass for it later, but…I kinda wanted to name him….Seymour…" Bender choked on his iced tea.

"After your dog?" he asked. Fry blushed deeper.

"Yeah…" he said. "I mean…it would kinda be like a dedication or a homage or something like that….y'know?" Bender blinked, then shrugged one shoulder in a 'eh, whatever' kind of way. "At least it was better than my _first_ choice."

"What's that?" Bender asked.

"….Yancy…"

"After your brother?"

"Yeah!" Fry said. "Yancy named his son after me, so I should repay the favor!"

"I think that's sweet," Leela said. "You really should do that." She turned to Bender. "What about you? Any girl names?"

Bender drank the last of his tea and nodded. "A few," he said. "I kinda like the name 'Rose'."

"Oh, that's a cute name!" Leela squealed. Fry nodded.

"Rose Rodriguez…" he mused. "I like it. I like it a lot. Great choice, Bender!"

"You're going with Bender's last name?" Leela asked.

"Yeah," Fry said. "Isn't that how it works? The kids get the dad's last name?"

"Yeah it is," Leela said. "Rose is a good name, Bender."

"It was better than my first choice," he said.

"What?"

"Ale."

Silence.

"You were going to name your child after beer?" Leela asked.

"It've made a cute girl's name!" Bender defended. "Back me up here, Fry!"

"…It _is_ kinda cute, Leela…"

"Oh, and I bet now you're thinking of naming the boy Jäger, right?"

"Come off it, Leela," Bender said. "I settled on Rose, anyway…jeeze…"

The conversation ended when the waitress came back to clear the dishes and drop off the bill. "You like everything okay, sweetie?" she asked, mainly to Bender. Bender saw Fry's face darken out of the corner of his eye and felt the temperature drop again.

"Sure," he muttered. The waitress handed them their bill, then put another piece of paper she was writing on next to it, winked at Bender, and walked away with a little too much hip-sway. Bender rolled his eyes and picked up the other paper to read it. His eyes narrowed.

"What's that?" Fry asked, his voice thick with pissed-offedness. Bender didn't want to, but he handed Fry the paper. Fry looked at it, and his eyes flashed with hot anger. "That whore…!"

"What is it?" Leela demanded, taking it from Fry. She read it. "…It's a phone number…" She read lower. "…'That whore' hardly does it justice," she spat. "Want me to kick her ass, Fry?" she asked.

"I got a better idea," Bender said, taking the paper back. He pulled out a pen and scribbled something on the back. "Let's go," he said. They walked up to the exit, seeing the whore--hacking cough--waitress waiting near. She smiled at Bender, who gave her a fake smile and handed her the folded up paper. She took it, her smile widening, but froze when Bender pulled Fry to him and kissed him softly on the lips. "Thanks for the service!" he said, pulling a dazed Fry with him to the door, a snickering Leela in tow.

When they were a safe distance, Fry snapped out of his daze. "Well," he said. "_That_ was new. Thanks."

"Anytime, Fry."

Leela smiled at the little romance spark between the two. "Hey, Bender," she suddenly said. "What exactly did you write on that note?"

Bender grinned evilly and shook his head.

**BACK TO THE WHOREahemWAITRESS**

After jerking out of her shock, the waitress looked at the note in her hand. She unfolded it and read it.

**Bite my shiny metal ass, whore!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

_**M'kay, now for the merry month of June…**_

The rest of the month of May passed without much to speak of, other than that Bender began to be more affectionate with Fry—only this time, more so in public. No one really said anything, but whenever they exited the room, no one could resist a giggle.

But the biggest revelation of their relationship came out with just one teasing remark from Amy. It was a really hot day, so they dragged out the pool, parasol, and lawn chairs to have the day off. Leela, Amy, Dr. Zoidburg, and Hermes were having a boy-vs.-girl chicken fight. Bender stayed with Fry under the large parasol to enjoy the fight while the Professor snoozed in his own chair. The girls won in a two-out-of-three match, then got out so Hermes could attempt to drown Zoidburg for making them loose.

Fry and Bender were sharing a large chair under one parasol; Bender had his arm around Fry, who leaned on his shoulder comfortably. Despite the heat, Fry had on a button-down short-sleeved shirt and a pair of swim trunks while Bender just had his own swimmers and a pair of shades. He had finally cut his hair to relieve himself of the heat, more along the lines of the What-If Machine's depiction. In contrast, Fry was still growing his out. His bangs framed his face while the rest of his hair almost touched his shoulders. At nearing the nine-month mark, his stomach was almost fully grown, but according to the Professor, he still had about two or three more months to go.

Fry looked from the attempt at murder in the pool to Bender, finding that the latter was looking at him through his shades. "What?" Fry asked, smiling. Bender shrugged his shoulders.

"You look hot," he said with a smile. Fry didn't know which of the two meanings to take, but Bender answered by unbuttoning the next three buttons down on his shirt. Fry felt a tiny twinge of disappointment, but Bender just leaned over and kissed his cheek.

"You look hot, too, Bender," Fry said, blushing. Bender smiled and tightened his arm around him.

"I know."

"Awww….how cute," Leela whispered to Amy as they watched their friends snuggle up. Amy giggled.

"Yeah," she whispered back, but a little louder without meaning to be. "When do you think they'll get married?"

"Amy!"

"What? I'm serious!"

Leela shook her head and squeezed the water out of her hair.

Back under the other parasol, Fry noticed Bender's arm was a _little_ too tight around his shoulders. "Eh…are you okay, Bender?"

Bender snapped out of his thoughts and looked over at Fry to see him pulled now uncomfortably too close to him. He loosened his arm's hold. "Sorry," he said apologetically.

"'S'okay," Fry said, relaxing on Bender's shoulder. "Are you okay?"

Bender shook his head. "I'm fine, Fry," he said. He felt Fry sigh and go into a light sleep. He stared off into the distance.

"_When do you think they'll get married?"_

_Married…._

Until then, the thought of…marriage…never passed through his mind. But now…thinking on it….He looked down at his companion's sleeping form and felt the now familiar flutter through his chest at the mere sight of him. Did he really have feelings for him like _that_? Love? Did he…? Could they…? They _could_. Gay marriage wasn't illegal.

Another epiphany. _Was_ he gay? Thinking on it, he really didn't find anyone else attractive, per se, anymore. The only one who ever made him feel that swelling flutter in his heart was Fry. His Phillip J. Fry. Every since he became human, he saw Fry so differently, especially after Halloween. He saw what he couldn't believe Leela missed—he _reveled_ in Fry's child-like demeanor. He loved the way Fry found the most miniscule thing fascinating, and at how his eyes would light up when something made him happy.

He also loved the way Fry blushed when he put his arms around him, or gave him something right out of the blue. He also liked how possessive Fry was; it was a show of loyalty. He couldn't imagine holding, kissing, or even being with anyone else anymore.

But really, wasn't that the whole point of marriage? Bender looked down at the snoozing man cuddled beside him and felt that flutter again. No one else in the universe could ever make him feel like this—and he knew it.

And then there was also the baby to think of. He reached his arm down and touched the swollen belly, feeling a light thump on his hand. After the baby was born, it wouldn't feel right, being just the live-in dad. He wanted his kid to have a _real_ home—a complete family. A mom, a dad, and maybe a pet. And being in New-New York, he _really_ didn't want someone calling his kid a bastard and them taking it literally. Hell no.

Fry shifting in his arms broke him out of his thoughts. He looked down to see Fry mumble something in his sleep and go still again. It was almost too cute. Bender smiled and kissed the top of Fry's head.

So yeah, he thought to himself. It had to be love. What else could it be?

**Short chapter, I know. Anyway, you don't really need a triple-digit IQ to figure out the upcoming events, do you? Cheers!!!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

_**This'll just be a short little chapter. The next one is better. Really.**_

A few days later, Bender woke up, feeling that something wasn't _quite_ normal. Not in a bad way, per se, but….just not normal. He yawned, stretched, let a few bones in his back crack, and rolled over to convince himself of more sleep. Before he could attempt, he saw something lying on the pillow next to him. He sat up and picked it up. It was a letter. Blinking the sleep from his eyes, he opened it.

_Bender—_

_Today is a special day for you. Do you know why?_

Bender blinked and thought. No, he actually really didn't. He read on.

_Didn't think so._ (Bender blinked) _But anyway, I had to get up early to make it special for you, so I hope you don't mind about the extra sleep I 'persuaded' you to get._

Bender broke from the letter again to look at the clock. It was quarter past noon. The hell…?

_When you finally drag your ass out of bed and get dressed, meet me on the spaceship. I'll be waiting with your surprise._

_—Fry _

Bender finished the letter and sat in silence for a moment. Then he shrugged and got up to get dressed. That done, he ran a hand through his short hair and yawned as he made his way to the ship, still tired. He passed Leela on the way, but she didn't say anything. She just turned from him and snickered into her hand.

'The hell's her problem…?' Bender wondered to himself. He shook it off and finally made it to the docking bay where the ship was waiting, the door and stairs already down. He walked up the steps into the ship and into the control area. Sitting in the captain's seat with one elbow on the armrest and his head leaning on his fist was Fry, who was smiling at him sweetly. Too sweetly.

"Okay," Bender said, crossing his arms and staring at Fry. "I'm up, I'm dressed—Wuddya want?" Fry's smile widened fractionally before he got up and walked over to Bender, his other hand behind his back. He stopped right in front of Bender with a mischievous grin on his face. "…What…?"

Fry's smile went a full 100 watts as he brought was behind his back in front of Bender. Bender looked down at it. It was a…beer mug. He raised an eyebrow and took it, then saw something imprinted on it in silver lettering.

_**Best Dad Ever**_

"Fry, what…?" Bender looked back up at Fry, who pulled him in by his shirt and kissed him softly. It lasted for a moment, then Fry pulled back and held the glass mug along with Bender.

"Happy Father's Day, Bender."

Bender's heart fluttered and he felt the sudden urge to cry—in a good way. He pulled Fry into a hug and just held him. He couldn't think of anything else or anywhere else he'd rather be right now.

……Well, maybe one, but it was kinda banned while Fry was pregnant.

**Aaaaaand there it is. Little short shit chapter. Mmmyep….**


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

_**Now for the good ol' month of July!!! When the baby **__**should**__** be born, but it's not. Pooh…**_

Fry, now fully nine months in, was in a state of metaphysical quandary. And that was rare. First and foremost—Bender. The man had been unnaturally quiet and a little distant; this look on his face like he was lost in thought. At first Fry just thought that Bender was having jitters about fatherhood, but just last week when he had leaned over to kiss him, Bender walked away, saying something about needing to go somewhere.

It made Fry borderline spastic. It was like Bender was…bored with him. He had asked Leela about it, but she was just as clueless as he was. All she knew was he went into town. A lot. Amy chipped in by saying she heard him on the phone once, and hung up as soon as she walked in. _That _started a whole new set of thoughts to trouble him with.

And one night, Bender didn't come home.

Fry sat up _way_ past what he was used to by now, then finally fell asleep on Bender's bed. When he woke up, Bender wasn't there, nor in any other room. And for the first time since Valentine's Day, he cried. He cried hard, thinking the worst. One part of him was telling him that it wasn't what it seemed; another part was screaming that he had found someone else—a nice, pretty, _not pregnant_ girl—to share time with. Hell, the man hadn't gotten laid since Halloween, so it was perfectly natural he wanted had to be it…Bender finally found someone…..Fry felt a tightening in his chest that made it hard to breathe. What if he didn't come back? _More tightening._ Or what if he just came back to move his stuff out? _Tighter._ What if….? What if….? A sharp pain ran from his chest to his stomach.

"Fry?" Leela's voice. "Fry, are you alright?! Fry!"

He blacked out.

"It was just a panic attack," the Professor said, looking a bit paler than normal. "I have no idea what caused it, but when he wakes up, he'll need to stay calm and collected."

Leela, who had been borderline in tears for the past hour, nodded. She had walked in to see if Fry wanted to go out for breakfast when she saw him kneeling on the floor next to Bender's bed with a hand on his chest and the other arm around his stomach. He had blacked out just as she reached him, and had screamed for the Professor while carrying him to the lab. While the Professor was finding out what was wrong and making sure the baby was okay, Leela was wondering where the hell Bender was.

After Leela checked on Fry herself once more, she left for the exit to go get something for Fry to eat when he woke up, when she saw Bender walk through the door, looking like he hadn't slept all night. But Leela was so angry, she didn't even notice.

"Where the _hell_ have you been!?" she screeched, making Bender jump and stare at her like a deer caught in the headlights. She stalked right up to him and resisted the urge to punch him.

"I was…I was out," Bender stuttered, backing up from the wrath of Leela. "Why?" Leela nearly lost it.

"You would know _'why'_ if you had been here!" she hollered. "I mean, Fry—!"

"What's wrong with Fry?!" Bender asked right away, his fear rearing up. "Is he okay? Is there anything wrong?"

"Well, you would know if you were here-!"

"Cut the shit, Leela, and tell me what happened!" Bender yelled, grabbing the front of Leela's shirt, his eyes full of worry. Leela saw his genuine fear and pointed to the Professor's lab. Bender pushed her out of the way and ran toward the lab, his heart pounding in his chest. He ran right in and saw Fry lying down on the medical-ish bed, his face pale.

"Oh…" Bender felt his legs go weak at the sight. "Oh, Fry…" He sat down next to the bed and stroked Fry's hair gently. He sighed with relief when Fry shifted slightly and opened his eyes. "Oh, God, Fry," Bender choked. "Don't scare me like that…"

"Don't…don't scare _you_ like that…?" Fry said after a brief pause, his eyes watering up. "What…" His breath hitched. "What about…_me_…?" He let the waterworks loose and just cried. Bender immediately sat Fry up and pulled him close.

"Fry…I…I'm sorry," he said, knowing it was because he didn't come home last night. "I just…I had to get out…I had to think…" He paused when Fry let out another wail.

"If you w-w-wanted t-to go out w-with someone else…" he prattled, "…y-you could 'a just t-t-told me!" Bender stiffened and pulled back to stare at Fry with that 'I cant be-fucking-lieve this' expression he rarely used anymore.

"…What the _hell_ are you talking about, Fry?" he demanded. Fry sniffed and felt new tears welling up.

"That was why you didn't come back, wasn't it?" he asked, wiping the tears from his damp face. "Y-you finally found someone?"

Bender's expression was one Fry hadn't seen before. It was blank, but with so much emotion, he couldn't tell one from the other. "Fry…" he said, his voice thick with emotion. "…If you weren't pregnant, I would smack the fuck out of you!" Fry gaped at him, all tears stopping. "What the _hell_ makes you think I would just leave you for someone!? I wouldn't _ever_ do that to you! Never!"

"Then where were you?" Fry demanded, tears of anger threatening his eyes. "And not just last night! It's like you've been gone for weeks!" He turned away from Bender, his face red from trying not to cry again. "If you want to back down from…from _this_…!" He gestured aimlessly at his stomach. "…Then just fucking say so-!" He cut off when Bender slapped him in the face. It didn't hurt, but it was enough to get his attention. He gaped at Bender, a trembling hand cupping his slapped cheek.

Bender's expression was one Fry had again never seen. His eyes were full of tears and his hands were shaking. "You…you idiot…!" he stuttered, screwing his eyes shut. "I already fucking told you, Fry! I'm not leaving! I never thought of it before, and I will never think of it ever! When will you get that through that thick, dumb head of yours…!?" Both his hands shot out to grab Fry's head and pull him forward. Their lips crashed together and Bender graced Fry with the deepest kiss he had ever given anyone; a kiss full of emotion he hadn't dared to express until now.

When he pulled back after a few moments, he pulled Fry into a firm but gentle hug. "I love you, Fry," he said in the firmest, most honest voice he had. "I love you, and I'm not leaving you. Ever."

Whatever Fry was holding back, he let loose. He let out a loud cry and clung himself to Bender, sobbing uncontrollably into his shoulder. Bender held him tightly to let him know he wouldn't leave, just like he promised.

What seemed like hours later, Fry finally pulled back, wiping the tears and mucus from his face. He gently touched Bender's face with his fingertips and leaned in cautiously for a kiss. Bender let him have it, and Fry pulled back, sure of himself now. "So," Fry said, sniffing a little. "I…I really gotta ask. What _were_ you doing last night?"

Bender went silent and slowly stood up, his face turned from Fry's. He took a shuddery breath and let it out slowly. "I've been doing a lot of thinking, Fry," he began slowly. "And I mean, a _lot_. About us. About our kid. About what's gonna happen in the future—_our_ future." He took another breath. "I made a decision yesterday, Fry. A big one. A decision I don't know you'll follow, but I made it just the same." He turned to Fry, his jaw trembling. "I spent all of last night in the park, thinking about you, me, and our child. I thought about your reaction to my decision, and what it'll be. But I'm done waiting, and I know you are too. So here goes…"

As he was talking, he had taken something out of his pocket and was holding it in his hand. He knelt down on one knee and held a tiny box out to Fry and opened it, revealing a simple silver band with a tiny yellow diamond in it.

"Phillip J. Fry, will you marry me?"

Fry stared at the ring with wide eyes, his mouth gaping open. His brain fought to function properly, and he actually half expected Ashton Kutcher's Head to pop out and yell 'You just got Punk'd!'. But that didn't happen. No 'just kidding'. No 'gotcha'. Just this. This…this…._moment_….

He reached out with trembling hands to touch the velvet box to make sure it was real. It was. Oh, it was real. Bender. His best friend. The father of his child. Bender Bending Rodriguez was asking him to marry him!

Fighting the urge to pass out or something like that, Fry burst into tears again and flung his arms around Bender's neck. "_**YES**_" he screamed, the volume of his voice of little concern. "Yes, yes, God, yes, I'll marry you!" He grabbed Bender's head and initiated another breathtaking kiss that lasted more than a few moments. When he pulled away, Bender took the ring out of the box and slid it on Fry's finger. A perfect fit. Just like them.

Just then, the door slid open, and Leela, Amy, and the rest of the motley crew rushed in to see what all the ruckus was about. "What's going on!?" Leela demanded, looking a little scared. Fry nearly jumped off the bed, Bender holding onto him with both arms. The look on Fry's face was one of complete and total ecstasy. He held up his hand while holding onto Bender with his other arm.

"_I'M GETTING MARRIED_!!!" he yelled happily, laughing with tearful joy. "Me and Bender are getting _married_!!!"

**Eh, I found it best to end it here. 'Nuff said to get the point across, no?**


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

_**Okay. So sorry this took so damn long. Computer was in the ER. The proposal is over, and the planning begins!!! Muahahahahaa!!!**_

It had taken Fry nearly two days to finally calm down enough to 1) sleep and 2) think clearly enough to actually _plan_ the wedding. And not just the date, but also the guests, the place, and…attire.

The first three were easy—the date was Fry's birthday, August 9. The guests to come were the crew, Kif (sans Zapp, thank _God_), Amy's parents, the cryogenic lab members, and Alex, Leela's steady. And the Wongs agreed to let them have the wedding on Mars. As for the attire….Fry was almost ashamed to admit the maternity-esque wedding dresses looked damn comfortable. That, and the fact that anything else wouldn't look quite right on him.

Right at the end of July, Fry agreed to go out with Bender and Leela and Alex as a sort of double-date. Fry didn't really get to know Alex so far, but he soon found out that he was a genuinely nice, trustworthy guy who was actually in love with Leela. Fry learned that Alex had a gay twin brother, and had no problem with being at the wedding.

So they went to Elzar's, naturally, to get better acquainted and discuss the wedding more. Fry didn't get many weird looks because he noticed that ever since he had been growing his hair out, he was beginning to look disturbingly similar to his mother. So, like Leela said—he looked like a slightly masculine woman. That, mixed with him holding onto Bender's arm they looked like a normal couple.

Not soon after they were seated and discussing the wedding plans, Fry heard the voice of the last person he expected to see.

"Oh my God, Fry, is that you?"

Fry turned around instinctively to see a familiar brunette standing close to his chair. "…Michelle?" It was. It was his ex-also-unfrozen girlfriend. "Yeah, it's me," he said lamely. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Bender's expression harden. 'Wow,' he thought. 'Now he knows how I felt…' "What're you doing here?"

"I'm just out to eat with my boyfriend," she said, Bender noticed, putting a little bit of emphasis on 'boyfriend'. "What about you? What's up with you now?" Bender looked at Fry, half expecting him to blush or turn back around or something like that. Instead, he saw Fry smile sweetly—too sweetly.

"Nothin' much," he said casually, leaning back a little. "I'm just engaged to the most wonderful person in the world and I have a kid on the way. Isn't that great?"

Bender could've died laughing at the expression on Michelle's face. He saw Michelle's date shift uncomfortably next to her. Michelle's flabbergasted face existed for only a moment before shifting into politely curious.

"Oh," she said. "Really?" Fry grinned and raised his hand to show off the ring.

"Yup," he said, his grin getting wider.

"Oh," she said again, her face a little flushed. "To who?"

Fry just gave her a sourly-sweet look and put his hand on top of Bender's, which was already lying on the table. Michelle's face was to die for and Bender felt about five ribs crack from trying not to laugh. "To my best friend in the world," Fry said passively.

"…Oh…." Pause. "What did you say about having a kid on the way…?"

"I'm about two months 'till due date."

Bender couldn't help it. He flunked his head into his free hand and burst out laughing at Michelle's face. Fry merely tightened his hold on Bender's hand, but not in a warning way. Michelle stared at them for a minute before smiling.

"Oh, I get it," she said. "You're joking, aren't you?" Fry merely shrugged, but kept that grin on his face. Michelle laughed. "Oh, you almost got me there for a moment, Fry. Good one." With that, she and her date, which had gone about five shades paler, left for their table.

"Was that priceless or _what_?" Fry snickered, joining Bender. Leela, who had been on edge with her protectiveness, finally cracked a smile.

"You couldn't even put money on that, Fry," she replied, breaking into giggles. Alex politely snickered into his hand.

"Oh, I cant _wait_ for the wedding…" Fry said, shaking his head.

"What?" Bender asked. Fry's expression turned serious.

"I'm inviting her to the wedding, Bender," Fry said. "For final closure, and to let her see that she doesn't have any control over me." He sighed. "I remember all five times we broke up…and I would take her back every time she asked me to because she knew I would." Fry gave Bender a smile. "She cant do that anymore, Bender. I've got someone else now."

"That's sweet…" Leela giggled. Bender rolled his eyes, but smiled.

"You're getting to be such a sap, Fry," he muttered. Fry batted his eyes teasingly and Bender gave him a gentle nudge. "Cute, Fry…"

Dinner was mostly a quiet affair, the conversation narrowed to the wedding and one interruption from the baby kicking. About two hours later, they decided to call it a night. Leela paid the bill and Bender helped Fry up from the chair.

"Oh, wait," Fry said, stopping Bender from getting up. Bender looked where Fry was looking and saw that Michelle and her boyfriend were walking their way for the door. "Hey, Michelle!" Fry called, beckoning her over. She followed his command, a confused look on her face. Fry dug something out of his jacket pocket and gave it to her.

"What is it?" she asked, taking the small envelope he gave her. Fry just smiled sweetly.

"My wedding invitation," he said. He took Bender's hand, and Bender helped him up. The look on Michelle's face when she saw his pregnant belly was even more priceless than when she thought he was kidding. Fry put one arm around Bender's waist and kissed his cheek. "Hope to see you there, Michelle."

Bender, Leela, and Alex couldn't contain their laughter at her expression as they all turned and left a speechless and sputtering Michelle.

A week later, Fry got a affirmative RSVP from Michelle in the mail.

**I am banging my head on the computer desk as we speak. **


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

_**Okees…the rest of the planning, and then…..TEH WEDDING!!!**_

After a week of debate, idea scrapping, and chewed nails, Fry finally decided on his wedding attire. He bit his lip and went for the dress. Leela kept reassuring him that it wouldn't be so bad, and that what was important was that he was comfortable. After trying on the maternity wedding dress he settled on, Fry was ashamed of himself to admit that it was indeed comfortable. Since it was a simple wedding, the dress was reasonably simple, but still nice.

The neckline was curved slightly, just past his collarbone, and was comfortably snug on the chest, then the cloth dropped loose just under his chest to loosely drape over his belly. It ended right at his ankles, where Leela insisted on him wearing white flats.

Fry fought with Amy about his hair—which she said would look cute pulled halfway up with a veil—and about how she wanted him to at _least_ wear some eye shadow. Fry had to—many times—bring up the fact that he was a _guy_. (Who just happened to be pregnant and wearing a dress.)

The day of the wedding came up quick, and the day before, the crew—and everyone else who was coming—loaded up on the ship and headed for Mars. Fry was quiet the whole trip, Bender noticed, but he didn't bring the fact up. He just watched his fiancé while the conversation around him centered around the wedding. Leela, who had been named honorary maid of honor, and Alex, the pose-in best man, were arguing with Amy about something concerning the reception.

When they touched down, pleasantries were exchanged and rooms were assigned. Bender and Fry shared a large room, and as soon as the atmosphere settled down, Fry went straight for the bed and flopped down, looking absolutely exhausted. Bender laid down next to him and put an arm around his shoulders.

"You okay, Fry?" Bender asked softly. Fry nodded and closed his eyes.

"I'm just really tired, Bender," Fry replied, lacing his fingers in Bender's. "Tomorrow's a big day, and I don't know if I'll be able to last the whole day." Bender pulled Fry closer and tucked Fry's head under his chin.

"No second thoughts?"

"Nope."

"You're ready to marry me?"

"Yep."

"Wanna fuck like crazy?  
"Not on your life, Bender."

Bender snickered. "How about on our honeymoon?"

"……Not on your life, Bender."

Fry smiled when he heard Bender pretend to sob in a fit of angst. He turned around and gently slugged Bender's arm. "Hey, enough of that, crybaby." He hugged Bender's arm. "Tell you what…if you can wait until after the baby's born, then I'll be at your complete mercy. Mkay?"

Bender pretended to think, then leaned over and kissed Fry's face. "Deal. Don't forget, I'll be taking you up on that, Fry."

"I wont forget, Bender." Fry sighed and leaned back on a pillow. "Right now, I just need some sleep. Gotta get up early tomorrow to stop Amy from making up like a doll."

Bender laughed and spooned Fry against him. "I'll protect you from the big bad Wong, don't you worry." There was no reply, and Bender looked over Fry's shoulder to see that his declaration of protection fell on sleeping ears. He laid back against his own pillow and closed his eyes.

'I'm getting married,' he thought to himself. He smiled in his near-sleep state. 'I'm getting married….'

**Short shit, I know…but the wedding and all that jazz will be up soon!**


End file.
